First of all, it is disturbing that after actually chaperoning the few games that have been held so far, the police should this week claim that the sport does not fall under their mandate and advance that as a reason for denying the organisers a permit. The previous events were held at Airport Junction Mall and Fairground Holdings, and no casualties whatsoever were reported, thanks partly to the presence of BPS officers who clearly enjoyed themselves at an occasion that lent itself well to mixing business with pleasure.
We all know that there is a similar case with the annual 1000km Desert Race or Mantshwabisi, as the motor spectacular organised by Botswana Tourism Board that attracts thousands of South Africans as both participants and spectators is better known. Hence we were flabbergasted to hear a senior police officer say on one radio station this week that Spin City was not under the mandate of BPS. We acknowledge that performing stunts with cars comes with risks, but we think this should be viewed alongside the environmental menace that results from Mantshwabisi. Even the real and present danger to the safety of spectators differs in scale because those off-road machines of Mantshwabisi are hellish monsters both in sight and size that growl and skid in the sand within arm's length of spectators.
